For most of us, recycling is only a brief thought as we throw items away throughout the day. Some keep a recycling bin for papers and cans, but most of us, even if we do try to recycle, don’t know the specifics of what can or can’t be recycled.
However, for Oliva Sanders, the Marketing Coordinator for METRO Recycling, recycling is what is foremost on her mind. It’s her job to get the word out about it and educate the rest of us on how and what to recycle.
“I really love my job, it’s exactly what I went to school for, so I’m very lucky,” Sanders said. “I’ve learned so much since I started working here.”
Sanders grew up in the Region and graduated from Boone Grove High School in 2011. She went to Ivy Tech and graduated with an Associate Degree in Industrial Technology and continued her education at Purdue Northwest in Westville, where she graduated two years ago with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Marketing.
“I always loved the business aspect of everything, and marketing is very creative," Sanders explained. “It’s the best of both worlds. Marketing allows you to really be creative and put your personal touch on everything, while still having fun.”
Sanders has her capable hands full at METRO.
“As marketing coordinator, I work with a variety of different marketing and advertising mediums. I work with everything from radio, billboards, magazines, social media and community outreach."
Indeed, with METRO having several sites in Valparaiso, Griffith, Indianapolis, and Blue Island, IL, she, and METRO, have a wide reach.
“We’re on a variety of different committees, and we’re very active in all the chambers in the area,” said Sanders. Being in the recycling business means that Sanders and METRO are concerned with the environment and humanity’s impact on it. Earth Day is a big deal for her and METRO.
“Porter County Recycling and Waste Reduction Earth day event is on April 21st next year and it’s a big deal for us. This is going to be my first Earth Day event,” explained Sanders. “I’m excited. It’s a chance to educate the community. We hand out capes to the kids so they can be Earth Day Heroes too.”
Clearly, Sanders has a passion for what she does, and METRO is fortunate to have her there to help spread the good word about recycling. Education is paramount to her mission, however.
“You can’t recycle plastic bags because they tear up the machines,” Sanders said. “But you can put them in a recycling container specifically for those plastic bags, like the big blue bins outside Walmart. Also, fun fact: at one point, aluminum held more value than gold.”
Sanders and METRO are doing good work and getting the word out about how to recycle so that we can extend the life of the materials we already consume and create less of an environmental impact. With Sanders at the marketing helm, it’s clear that she will do just that.
For more information about METRO Recycling’s Earth Day event or if you just want to learn how to better recycle, contact her at Olivia.sanders@wheredoirecycle.com or visit their website at www.wheredoirecycle.com.